Whatever the case, life goes on. I have a grace period to digest the lemons, but then I, too, must go on. Yet, going on does not stop me from being tired so I have to find ways to renew my energy. I have to figure out how to stop being tired, how to find pockets of strength in the middle of exhaustion, healing, and growth.

I am here to share how I keep going, to share how I stop being so tired. This is not a comprehensive list. This is not the be all and end all. This is just me – an ordinary girl trying to live an extraordinary life and share with you along the way.

Just stop.

Sometimes you do not have time to weigh the pros and the cons. You do not always have the time to put a new system in place to take care of the your current system while you are away. Sometimes you need television to babysit kids on school nights. Sometimes you have to accept broken lamps, undone to-dos, and half done work. Sometimes your social media stats and your blog stats have to suffer. Sometimes you will not have the strength to return likes and comments…or text messages or phone calls. Sometimes you need a moment.

Recognize that standing still is progress. There is power in standing still. Sometimes all you have is broken promises and unanswered prayers. You do not have strength to keep going so just stop.

Get out of the house.

Go downtown and eat beignets while the weather is beautiful. Go to a movie theatre. Go on a coffee date. Go to a pumpkin patch. Step out of the areas that make you tired and into areas that are completely unrelated.

I went to watch my niece in Music Man the other day, when I needed to get out. Having never seen the play or movie before, I had no idea of the story line in advance. While I anticipated a happy ever after, I was delighted by the perfectly imperfect slight plot twist. I could not have envisioned a better finale. I wondered to myself how often that happens in life, how often people accept our flaws, love us through our flaws, how often our flaws may be the very thing people need…yet I digress…

Getting out of the house is everything you need for an energy boost. You need a little fresh air, vitamin D or vitamin sea. You need the chance to view life through a different lens.

Give it to God again.

And again. And again. And again. Acknowledge your worries. All of them. Go down the list over and over. Give Him the big things and the small things. Give Him the things you gave Him yesterday, last week, last month, and last year. I know you feel like you already prayed about it. You already gave it to Him. Sometimes, you just need Him to hear it again. You need Him to hear it one more time because you are still tired. You are still worried. You are still tossing and turning at night. You are still crying. You are still staring at those broken promises and unanswered prayers with disgust. You still have the strong remnants of lemons fresh on your breath and in your stomach.

Whatever you do, keep going. You take your rest. Get out of your house. Give it to God. Enjoy the burst of renewed energy no matter how large or small and keep going. Take it one day at a time. If you rest enough, get away enough, give it to God enough, you will find that as you go, your journey gets just a little bit easier.

Watch your energy increase at each stop. Watch your perspective shift with every getaway. Watch your faith multiply with each AND every again.

“Come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

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What are some methods that have helped you figure out how to stop being tired?

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Published by ordinarilyextraordinarymom

My name is Brittany Bonnaffons, and I feel like I should have life figured out by now. I also feel like the world judges us by unrealistic standards. I have dedicated this blog to challenging standards and instead embracing yourself for who you are - ordinarily extraordinary.
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36 thoughts on “Renewed Energy – How to Stop Being So Tired”

Wonderfully written, dear!
Here lately I have been enjoying sitting on a stool in the garden and mindlessly pulling weeds. A few times I have sat down at the piano and played old favorites, something I have not done for quite a while. I’ve gone to the basement and read several chapters of the Bible in one sitting. I’ve taken the kids out for ice cream just because. It really does help to get my mind and energies going from negative to positive again. Negativity is draining, whether it comes from within or from without. Out with the garbage and in with real life!

I am all about Sabbath rest. I grew up Seventh-Day Adventist, but I did not truly appreciate the Sabbath until I got older. I had not thought of this post as relating to Sabbath rest until you mentioned it, but I do think you are correct.

This absolutely hits home for me! I feel tired all of the time. I recently purposed in myself that I would stop trying to make everything perfect and enjoy the ride. It seems like the weight has lifted. God is so good! And like you said, Just give it to God. Great article!

Wonderful suggestions. I do feel tired all the time, but I thought it was more physical than mental. However, I notice the more I watch the news or follow national headlines, the more exhausted I feel, physically and emotionally. I watch a lot of comedies and unplug in my worst times and it does seem to help. Today I am trying to do some cooking therapy and see if it helps at all. Thank you for sharing your tips.

Tiredness and fatigue bother me when I have too much happening in my life. I get worried and overwhelmed while trying to accomplish everything. Pausing to pray and ask God for help always helps me and puts my focus on Him instead of myself.

I know exactly how you feel. God had to force me to power through this one. I started then stopped, then could not find the motivation to keep clicking away. Then when I finished writing, I went to bed last night and said I would edit photos and rich pins, blah, blah, blah today, and gosh dern it if I couldn’t sleep last night. All I felt was Him urging me to hit publish! So I added a quick photo and published. I know how He is. Can’t even rest well until we have literally turned it ALL over to Him.

Oh my goodness. I thought to myself, how can this be the first time I am sitting down to watch this play unfold? God absolutely understands and demonstrated how He wants us to rest. Thanks for that reminder.

Brittany, May the Lord bless you and uphold you. You’re doing all you can in these times of exhaustion and discouragement. Your to-do list is spot on and quite thorough.This will pass. Things will change. And until that happens, the Lord will stay right there with you, never leaving you and never forsaking you. I pray you’ll soon emerge from the weariness and the struggle.

It was so crazy! I felt my spirits lift as soon as I pressed publish. Like I just needed to get it all out, and then He was like, “Perfect. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Now here is your peace.” I guess God works like that sometimes.

I love this post because it’s honest. It’s real life. “Give it to God again. And again. And again.” That’s just how it is, isn’t it? I’m so glad He is always there to take our worries, our struggles and our weariness.

Yes. I was talking to my close friend about this the other day. So often, we get stuck as Christians thinking we already gave it to God. Why are we still carrying it around? It’s ok for us to give it to Him more than once.

Great post Brit. I struggle with being tired all the time too. I feel like even I’m asleep I’m still awake. lol I’m constantly thinking, thinking and thinking and by the time I actually DO fall asleep, it’s time to get up!! The struggle is real. :S

Yes to the “again and again and again.”
I think I imagine God becoming impatient with my continual neediness, and then I read words in the Truth about Him rejoicing over me with singing, and this reminds me that He’d rather hear from me with a cry for help than with a need for forgiveness after I’ve blown it on my own.

This is so true for all of as limited human beings, Brittany! I’m so glad you shared vulnerably and honestly about your struggle and how it illustrates the need to just keep on giving it to God again and again and again! Thanks for this beautiful boost in my day! And I hope you are feeling more energized today as well!

I am actually. Yesterday I was down for the count after work, but I think as soon as I hit publish, God lifted my spirit. Almost like He was telling me, “I need you to write WHILE YOU ARE TIRED. That way you are not speaking hypothetically. You are not speaking of things you would like to do if you had the energy. You are speaking of what you can do to cope right now. Right in the middle of tired.”

Thank you for your honesty, Brittany! We’ve all been there and many of us are there now! I love that you keep it simple! Stop. Get out of the house. Give it to God. Yep, we can all remember that! Blessings!!

Simple tips, yet so effective and completely doable! Fresh air can be life-giving and a change of scenery can rejuvenate and inspire. Thankful that we can bring all to our loving Father! Thanks for sharing, friend!

Of course. It’s the simple things that I so often overlook then I cannot understand why I am feeling so overwhelmed. This time of year, the weather is so beautiful that I feel like I could LIVE outside. My co-workers laugh because if they are looking for me during my off period, and I am not in my room. There’s a 90% chance I am out by the pond…getting much needed vitamin D.